If you want to know what kind of magic new Baltimore Ravens head coach Jesse Minter can work with defensive players, simply look at former Ravens first round pick Odafe Oweh.
The Ravens gave up on Oweh, the No. 31 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, when they traded him to the Los Angeles Chargers just 5 games into the 2025 season and with Oweh registering zero sacks through Baltimore’s 1-4 start.
Oweh turned into a star playing for the Chargers under Minter’s tutelage as defensive coordinator — 7.5 sacks over the final 12 games of the regular season. Now, he’s staring down what should be a lucrative free agent deal, which should be something in the range of a 3-year, $60 million contract.
It’s that kind of magic Minter is being urged to use on the trade market this offseason and cut a deal for underperforming former first round pick and Green Bay Packers edge rusher Lukas Van Ness.
“Lukas Van Ness would be a buy-low candidate,” Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine wrote. “He’s entering the fourth year of his contract and hasn’t made the impact that Green Bay expected when they took him in the first round of the draft. Perhaps new head coach Jesse Minter could get another level of production out of him and add depth they need on the outside.”
Van Ness Needs Change of Scenery
The Packers traded up to get Van Ness with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft after he earned All-Big Ten honors in 2022.
The 6-foot-5, 272-pound former Iowa star hasn’t even been able to crack the starting lineup for the Packers in 3 seasons. In that time he’s only started 2 games — both came in an injury-plagued 2025 season in which he missed a career-high 8 games when he had a career-low 1.5 sacks.
Van Ness has just 8.5 sacks and 23 QB hits through his first 3 seasons — numbers you would expect from a high level edge rusher in just 1 season of work.
Perhaps the biggest sign the Packers ready to move on from Van Ness came before the 2025 season when they made a blockbuster trade for Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons then handed him the biggest contract for a defensive player in NFL history.
Now, there’s no chance Van Ness leap frogs either Parsons (12.5 sacks) or Rashan Gary (7.5 sacks) on the depth chart. Not in this lifetime.
Packers Picked Van Ness Over Pair of All-Pros
Coughing up a 5th round pick or maybe even a 4th round pick for Van Ness would probably be worth it for the Ravens. He still has one year left on the 4-year, $17.3 million rookie contract he signed in 2023 so he won’t be an expensive addition to the roster and the Ravens would only be on the hook for his $3.12 million salary in 2026.
Another reason the Packers might want to get rid of Van Ness might be that he’s a constant reminder of what a massive failure the 2023 draft was for them. Not only did they trade up for him, but passed over a pair of NFL All-Pro superstars in the process with New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (No. 17 overall) and Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxson Smith-Njigba (No. 20 overall).
Ravens Urged to Trade for ‘Buy Low’ Former 1st Round Pick